


Breaking the News

by Skywinder



Series: Missing Piece AU [6]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Pre-Earth Transformers, War Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-16
Updated: 2014-11-16
Packaged: 2018-02-25 07:50:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2614037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skywinder/pseuds/Skywinder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Starscream pays a visit to Skyfire's kin and their settlement.  But the reason for the visit is far from pleasant.</p><p>Takes place between chapters 5 & 6 of <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/890098">Missing Piece</a>, and the events related here occur about 12,000 vorns after the end of <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/2583077">Armistice</a>.</p><p>Part of NaNoWriMo 2014</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breaking the News

**Author's Note:**

> This side-story shows perhaps what is the most unpleasant part of Starscream's life as a guide. And re-opens an old wound at the same time.
> 
>  
> 
> While it might seem odd for the implied character death tag to be added at the start, there is a purpose to it if you read a bit further. There was one thing I've always indicated was going to happen from the moment I introduced a particular character. Let's see if you can guess who I'm referring to.
> 
> EDIT: After putting this up, I remembered a quote from a historical fiction book concerning another war I read some years ago. Given the context of the quote, and realizing it could fit with the context of this story, and even perhaps the series, I have put it in here. It will also be appearing in chapter 9 of Missing Piece.

* * *

_"This war is a beast with long claws."_ \- Matt Creighton (from _Across Five Aprils_ by Irene Hunt)

* * *

"Starscream. What brings you out here?"

A grinning Starscream looked up from the laughing crowd of younglings that surrounded him at the sound of the friendly voice. He nodded at the approaching mech, a large black shuttle.

"Hello, Stellarios," he replied, in a polite tone, skirting the other's question for the moment. This was neither the time nor place to tell him, not with the young ones present, he thought grimly. Best for the news to be broken to them later by their own kin...

Instead, the tri-color replied, "I was just passing by this system and thought I'd visit. I did bring a few supplies. Not much, though. Things are getting tighter out there."

Stellarios nodded in understanding, but his gaze, which had been friendly before, now became a bit searching. The small smile the other mech had worn on his approach faded as he caught something off in the other flier's demeanor. A ping sounded against Starscream's comm. system. The tri-color acknowledged the ping, which was followed by a message.

_::You have brought news as well, I assume?::_

Starscream met Stellarios' gaze squarely.

_::Yes.::_

_::Good or bad?::_

Starscream hesitated a moment before he replied.

_::It's...not good, Stellarios.::_

Stellarios nodded again, frowning. Aloud, he spoke, directing his comments to the younglings, "You can help Starscream with unloading those few supplies later, not to mention ask him about what he's been up to. Right now, I would like to speak with him about some matters."

"Aw, Beta-Sire...," one began to whine.

Stellarios looked at that youngling sternly. "Would you like me to tell your Creators that you were disobeying a request I made, Bolt?"

"No, sir," the youngling called Bolt answered quickly.

"Good. Now off with you all. He'll be here a short while, I'm sure, so you'll have a chance to see him again before he goes," the elder shuttle replied.

"Bye, Starscream!" the younglings called as they headed off.

Starscream smiled after them. It seemed so strange sometimes, how well he was getting along with Skyfire's clan now, considering how much they'd never gotten along before. Even that fragger Steelblaze seemed to have figured out to keep his mouth shut sometime during these past twelve thousand vorns since their meeting on that space station. Perhaps the reality of being exiles had caused more than a few of Skyfire's clan to have come to the same conclusions that Stellarios had. Whatever the case, Starscream wasn't going to question it.

 _At least something good has come out of this war_ , he thought wryly. Something that was no mean feat these orns.

"So what have you heard?" Stellarios' voice brought Starscream out of his musings.

Starscream looked up into the other's optics. As much as he wanted to, would be no putting this off, he could tell.

After a moment, he replied, "Not here." He gestured with his head to the side.

Stellarios nodded in understanding and he started walking to the overlook, Starscream close behind.

After a few kliks, they reached the cliff overlooking the vast plain. It really was a sight, the Seeker mused. No matter how many times he saw it, he just couldn't help but admire the view. The settlement was built on a large mesa which was surrounded on all sides by a vast plain. The plain was a grassy one all around, with mountains and hills in the distance on either side. The ships that the Altihexians had come in were parked over the side of the mesa with the large overhang.

But he hadn't come here just to admire the view. He turned to look at Stellarios, who was now seated on a natural crag of stones on the edge of the mesa waiting patiently. Starscream sat down on another across from the elder flier.

This wasn't going to be fun, Starscream thought grimly, the pleasant expression he'd worn earlier now gone from his face. His mind flashed back to those images he'd been shown...

After cycling his intakes a few times, he began.

"You know how I've been continuing to assist refugees from Cybertron. Well, about thirty orns ago, I ran into a small group of them near Monacus, about two hundred of them combined from some of the smaller city-states. Somehow, they managed to steal a couple of non-sentient shuttles from the Autobots. Not sure how they managed that, but they did." Starscream shook his head in slight disbelief, and even the older shuttle looked a bit puzzled about that. Not that Starscream could blame him, as even he knew that stealing even one shuttle from a military unit would be considered next to impossible by most sane mechs. But perhaps desperation was a good motivator, and nowadays, most unaffiliated surviving Cybertronians were doing whatever they had to in order to get out.

But speculations on these Neutrals' motives could wait for another time. What he had learned needed to be said.

"In any case," Starscream continued, "they started having some mechanical problems with one of them and were making a layover to try and get the parts they needed. I met them while they were doing so, and gave them a hand with negotiating the price. In return, they told me a few pieces of news about what was going on back on Cybertron."

The black shuttleframe frowned. "What has been happening?" he asked, a tone of concern in his voice.

Starscream looked at him glumly. "Things have escalated even further, Stellarios. Remember how I told you what I learned of the Autobot attack on Tarn about one hundred vorns ago?" When the other mech nodded, Starscream continued. "Apparently the Decepticons have taken what they consider 'fair payment' for it."

Stellarios became very still. "What exactly did they consider 'fair payment'?" The tone of his voice indicated he was starting to realize where Starscream was going with this.

Starscream turned his head away a moment, to stare across the plains once more. Then he again met Stellarios' optics.

He really didn't want to do this, he could remember all too well how he'd felt the day he'd learned of Vos, and there was no doubt in his mind how this news would be taken. But there was no one else to do so, and perhaps the news would be better accepted from him than from a stranger. Even if Srissin had been sympathetic, not all would be anymore.

_No going back now._

The tri-color turned his gaze back to the ground.

"They told me that the Decepticons launched attacks on two city-states. One about fifty vorns ago, and the other just ten. The first was Simfur." Stellarios' optics widened slightly at the mention of the most religious center on Cybertron being attacked. "It was completely destroyed, from what they told me," Starscream said softly.

"The second," he looked up again and his voice lowered to a whisper, "was Altihex."

Stellarios froze. For a klik or two, he said nothing, then: "No." He started shaking his head. "Please tell me they were mistaken."

"I wanted to believe that too, but when I said something to that effect, they showed me images of the destruction. Just enough of some of the architecture remained that I recognized it. Stellarios, I am so sorry," Starscream finished, still whispering.

The elder shuttle seemed to deflate. He just collapsed half in on himself, arms crossed on his legs, his hands clenched, body trembling.

Starscream looked away again. He could understand very well what Skyfire's Co-Creator was feeling right now. To be told your home was gone was not an easy thing to hear. As much as he missed Skyfire, he was glad his lover hadn't been here to know this. The pain of such loss wasn't something he would wish on anyone else, and he would have given anything to not have related this news.

After several kliks had passed in silence, Stellarios looked up, his optics full of grief. "Did they say anything about survivors?" he whispered, pain clear in his voice.

Starscream turned back to Stellarios. This would probably be the very worst part. "They told me that about one thousand are known to have survived Simfur, and only about three hundred were pulled out of Altihex's ruins, with about fifty dying from their injuries later. They couldn't give me any designations."

Stellarios nodded numbly. "Of course," he said, softly and bitterly, his gaze turning towards the landscape. "It doesn't matter to anyone else outside the city who they were. It only matters to those left behind."

"It seems that way," Starscream agreed. While the Autobots might have had that information, it was unlikely they'd just give it to civilians once they'd determined the final casualty amount. Not to mention there wasn't any way to get hold of the data even if they _had_ been willing to share.

"They said that some of the survivors of both city-states joined the Autobots, and others have gone to live in the ruins of the fallen cities," Starscream said after another moment of silence.

"Primus watch over them," Stellarios murmured softly in response. He broke his gaze away from the landscape to stare at Starscream now. "How do you bear this? How do you manage to deal with knowing what happened to your once-home? And with the not knowing what happened to those close to you?"

It was now Starscream's turn to slump over in a pose similar to the shuttle's. When he lifted his head, his expression was bleak. "I deal with it one orn at a time, by trying to focus on what good memories I have of them. It's not easy, never has been, and I won't deny that helping you and the others has been my coping mechanism in any number of ways, but it's all I can do." A bitter smile flickered briefly over his features. "For over one thousand vorns after Vos fell, I was alone. At least you will have those around you to share your grief with."

Stellarios nodded grimly. There really seemed to be nothing he could say to that, as he knew all too well it was true. "I can see why you didn't want to have the younglings around when you told me this," he said finally. "It isn't something that should just be dropped on them. Still...they will have to know.

"Thank you for telling me this," the shuttle continued. "I will inform the others...And I would like to invite you to stay and join us for the mourning rites for the deactivated." As Starscream looked up in slight surprise, Stellarios explained, "We may not know exactly who survived and who did not, and we may never know, but whoever the dead were, they should be remembered regardless. Not to mention that Jetfire accepted you into the Lunarfire clan, even if the official bonding between you and Skyfire never took place. As such, you are Altihex kin-tied, and have the right to be there during the ceremony.

"You may not have had the chance to mourn Vos, but you should be allowed the chance to mourn your mate's home," he finished. "It is only right."

"I...Thank you, Stellarios," Starscream said, his voice full of emotion. This was something else he hadn't expected to ever hear. Again, he was struck by the thought of how far he had come in regards to Skyfire's kin.

"Come," Stellarios said, rising from his seat. "I promised the young ones that they could help you with those supplies. They can do that while I gather the others to let them know what has happened. Then...we can organize the rites."

Starscream was slightly taken aback by the shift in gears, but then he saw the pain still in the other's optics, and realized what the shuttle was doing: simply trying to focus on what needed to be done right now. Something that the tri-color had had to learn so long ago...

He suspected that Skyfire's Co-Creator would allow himself and his own kin the luxury of mourning later on in private. But for now...

For now, there were things to be done.

Starscream rose from his seat, and the two fliers walked slowly back to the settlement.

**Author's Note:**

> Let us have a moment of silence for Altihex.
> 
> There will be no other stories done in relation to [Armistice](http://archiveofourown.org/works/2583077). This was written to tie up the remaining loose ends with regards to Skyfire's clan and Starscream's relationship with them. I might make a few mentions regarding it, but will not take them any further in future.


End file.
